The Post-Growth Finance Action Circle
Arketa Institute’s Matt Orsagh (top, second from right), Anastasia Linn (front, center) and Steve Rocco (front, second from right) at the first in-person meetup of the Post-Growth Finance Action Circle. Photo credit: Alexandra Mestre.
Over the last ten months, Arketa Institute's Steve Rocco and Matt Orsagh have been participating in a first-of-its-kind community of practice: the Post-Growth Finance Action Circle organized by Research & Degrowth International.
Together with a cohort of 20+ international peers, the Circle has been connecting with leading researchers (such as Jennifer Hinton, Giorgos Kallis, and others involved in The REAL Project) and discussing the implications of their findings for our industry.
If the in-person meetup earlier this month was any indication, we can expect to see much more progress and collaboration on this topic in the near future, which we at Arketa Institute look forward to supporting.
Envisioned as a “catalyst for post-growth transformations”, the Research & Degrowth Action Circles bring together motivated leaders in different fields to “develop actionable policies, alliances, and implementation strategies for a just transition towards a post-growth society”. Initiated in 2024, the Finance Action Circle is one of the first of these.
The First In-Person Gathering
While the majority of the Action Circle meetings have been held virtually, the first in-person meetup was held in Barcelona, May 7-9th, 2025. A number of the Circle members were able to make the trip and we had many fruitful discussions, as well as hearing insights from local leaders like Jordi Ibáñez of Fiare Banca Etica and Eloi Domingo Castells of Coop57.
Arketa Institute’s Anastasia Linn was brought on to support the event, facilitating several of the sessions with Maiko Mathiesen and providing an input on strategic communication on the third day.
Overall, it was an inspiring experience and one that lay foundations for continued action in our industry in the years to come.